Flying Kites
by BlueIce RedFire
Summary: when the weather is right, we fly our kites.
1. one - my kite got stuck

**chapter one**

A gust of wind blew from behind him, making his scarf slap him in the face as the wind carried it forward. Naegi shut his eyes, a little startled by the little woollen ends of the scarf whipping him in the face, that he'd lost concentration of the kite he was supposed to be flying.

From beside him, Maizono giggled. Like Naegi, she had chosen a scarf and jumper combination, however her scarf didn't wave in the wind and left her unaffected by the mischief of the gust. Her grip on her kite didn't loosen, and it continued to dance in the air gracefully, riding the small gust of wind so effortlessly.

Naegi's on the other hand, was erratically jolting from side to side due to the winds, and it didn't made it any better that it was very close to where trees of its height were waiting to catch the origami masterpiece in their branches. Comparing the two kites in the sky, it was quite comical to think that both of them were riding the same light breeze that the world had to offer.

Another heavier gust of wind, blew both kites forward unexpectedly. Maizono was quick to react, planting herself into the ground while holding onto the handles steadily, while her kite remained attached to her line, and yet still managed to dance in the air. Naegi's however, was not so fortunate. His reaction time was a little slower than Maizono, that by the time he'd dug his heels into the ground, the kite had snapped off from the string and sailed through the air, taking off on its own course.

"Looks like you got unlucky there," Maizono said with a cheeky tone. She had began rolling her kite up, but kept her gaze into the sky where she watched Naegi's blue crane kite disappear over the trees.

Naegi's face had fallen, and he had dropped his head miserably. Once Maizono had finished wrapping up her kite, she walked over to him and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "Let's go look for it, maybe we can fix it?"

Naegi seemed a little hopeless at that, but gave her a smile and a nod of his head. "Yeah, maybe."

The two left the park side by side, as they followed the direction of where the kite had sailed. Along the way, Maizono had stopped some people as they were coming their way, asking whether or not they'd seen Naegi's kite fly by. Every time she asked, Naegi's felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment, and remained red even after Maizono had said goodbye to them.

"Oh look, there it is," Maizono said, pointing upwards. Naegi followed her finger to the large tree right on the sidewalk, and gulped when he saw the familiar blue kite stuck at the very top of the tree. And needless to say, it was a long way off the ground to go get.

Maizono had insisted that they got it back, because otherwise it would be littering and Naegi was too pure to allow such treachery to occur. The two stopped right under the tree where they looked for a way to get the kite back. The thin white string of the kite dangled below the thin paper creation, which caught both of their eyes and Maizono looked over at Naegi with a smile.

It was obvious to him what she was implying, and he was very sceptical of doing it. "No way, that's unsafe!"

"You'll be fine, Naegi-kun," Maizono said with a smile. "It's not too high, and if you fall I'll catch you."

The sheer mention of being caught by Maizono caused Naegi to flush. He was aware that he was a fair bit shorter than her, but even then he didn't know if she was strong enough to even catch him from such a height. And he was too embarrassed to let it happen.

"O-Okay," he said meekly, stepping forward. He saw a large branch above his head, perfect for the start of his climb and jumped into the air to try and grab ahold of it. Only, he missed, and his jump was nothing more than a hop that got him not even two feet into the air.

Maizono giggled and stepped forward. "I'll help you," she told him, extending her arms. "Here, Naegi-kun. I'll lift you up."

Naegi was hesitant. "Uh, do you think it will work?"

"Don't be silly, it will be fine," she said in response, giving him a positive smile. "I'm your friend, you can trust me."

Well, she had him there. Naegi took a deep breath, before Maizono put her hands up his arms and began lifting him up. Immediately, he noticed the strain in her face and went to protest for her to put him back on the ground when she let out a rather forceful grunt and sat him atop his shoulders.

To say Naegi was stunned was an understatement. The trunk was right in front of him and he could most likely wrap his arms around the branch from here and hoist himself up but he was too held up on how Maizono managed to lift him up onto her shoulders.

"Can you reach?" Maizono called out beneath him, snapping him back to reality. He looked at the thick log in front of him and nodded his head.

"Yeah." He reached his arms out for the branch, Maizono beneath him stepping forced in order to get him closer to the trunk. Naegi got both his arms over the tree and began swinging his legs up to get him fully on the branch. But that didn't exactly work.

Maizono chuckled, and worked from the ground to help push Naegi's legs up on the tree. Once Naegi was fully on the log, still crouched down and breathing heavily, she smiled. "Now you just need to climb."

He nodded his head and tried standing up. He used the base of the trunk to steady himself, as he spotted the branch he needed to use to climb up. Naegi helped himself up the first branch, and the second branch where he was getting closer to the string that would help him pull the kite down.

"You got this, Naegi-kun!" Maizono cheered from the ground. Before he could stop himself, Naegi looked down to smile at his friend when he noticed how far off the ground he'd already climbed; which wasn't far but definitely looked like a long drop.

Now he felt pretty much petrified.

"You can do it!" Maizono cheered again. "You're almost there!"

That thankfully managed to soothe his nerves and Naegi felt himself nod. He kept his head level or above and helped himself up climbing the last branch, where the string of the kite dangled right in front of him. Only, just further out over the branch. That would mean he wouldn't have any steady support if he walked over to retrieve it.

"I'll catch you if you fall!" Maizono called from the ground. "Don't worry about it!" It was like she read his mind.

He took another breath before pushing himself off the trunk and concentrated all his thoughts on his balance, as he made his way over the branch. His feet moved slowly forward, arms out wide steadying him. A thinner branch ran alongside him, which he was brush his hand into if he felt unbalanced, gripping onto the thin twig for support. It supported him somewhat, though he still wasn't in reach of the string.

He shifted slowly further, feeling the branch underneath him adjust to his weight, which made him very anxious. Naegi's breaths became more rapid and heavy as he drew closer to the string, and further along the branch. The string was, thanks to his good luck, dangling right over the end of the branch he was standing on.

Maizono followed along with his steps, making sure she could be there if Naegi does lose his balance.

Naegi reached out to try and grip onto the string, and fortunately wrapped the thin white thread up in his hand, and gave the kite a nice tug so it could dislodge itself from the tree and fall down into his arms. But fortune did not favour him as the string snapped, and the thread fell down over his head. The kite was still up there.

Even Maizono didn't know what to say in response to this, and shared the same look of surprise and disappointment that Naegi had. Turning a little red herself, she looked away and hid her face underneath the scarf. "Maybe we should go."

Though his morals and perfect record would be challenged, Naegi had to agree. "Yeah, I'll get down."

As he pivoted on his foot to head back to the trunk for a more safer getaway, a loud snapping sound shocked both him and Maizono and they looked at each other with wide eyes, knowing very well where the snap came from. Naegi managed a small smile before the branch gave way and dropped beneath him, his body going down with it.

At this moment, it felt like time slowed down. Maizono rushed to try and catch Naegi, but was also at risk of being crushed by the broken branch. Her arms were outspread as she readied herself to catch him, whilst Naegi snapped his eyes shut, not wanting to watch what would happen next.

He somehow started to feel as if he was falling slower, but still didn't dare to open his eyes. His other senses were completely blocked, and he couldn't tell what was going around him other than the fact that he was falling and would probably end up bedridden for the next couple of days after this.

An odd gust of wind ran past him, at first pushing him down a little before it shifted to his right. His skin stood on an end, and before he knew it he had stopped falling and had landed safely in a warm set of arms.

His eyes opened, finding Maizono looking up at him with quite the relieved expression. Seeing him away, she cocked her head to the side and flashed him a grin. "I knew you could do it." Unsure of what she meant, Naegi went to ask but noticed something appear out of the corner of his eye: his blue crane kite.

Sitting up in Maizono's arms, to which she responded by setting him on the ground, he grasped the kite that was lodged between his arm and his body curiously, wondering if maybe it had fallen while he was falling off the branch. Speaking of that branch, was Maizono okay.

"I'm fine, Naegi-kun," Maizono told him with a smile. "The log didn't come anywhere near me."

"H-Huh?" Naegi said, surprised. "How did you know…?"

"Because I'm psychic." Maizono giggled, before waving a dismissive gloved hand. "Just kidding!"

Naegi nodded his head, and looked away from Maizono as his cheeks started to heat up. His eyes skimmed the ground below him, and looked over at the branch he was once standing on. The thick width of the branch had been sliced right through, causing Naegi to raise his eyebrow curiously. _Did…Maizono do that?_

"Naegi-kun," Maizono began, and Naegi shot up to look right at his friend. She was smiling politely at him, and tilted her head once they made eye contact. "Can I put you down now?"

"O-Of course!" Naegi flushed. "S-Sorry, Maizono-san."

Maizono simply giggled as she put the luckster on the ground. Naegi stood in front of her head, down as he looked at the kite in his hands. He was still rather confused; how did the kite suddenly find itself in his hands when the string had already snapped?

He looked up to see Maizono tucking back a lock of her hair, looking past him in the direction of the park. "Maybe we should head back to school," she suggested. Naegi nodded his head silently, as Maizono took initiative and began walking back.

He trailed behind her, holding the kite close to his chest still going over how he got it back in his mind. Curiously, he lifted his head and looked behind him at the tree where he spotted the rugged split of the branch that he'd snapped. That didn't make sense, considering the branch he'd noticed was cut through cleanly. Even if someone had cut through it, where was the other half of the split log?

Still not satisfied, he took a step back towards the tree and looked briefly for the other half of the sliced log. Still, he saw nothing.

Sighing to himself, he turned his head back to the path and went to catch up to Maizono when he heard the sounds of rustling leaves, and snapped his head back to the tree. He scanned the tree closely, thinking it may have just been a bird when the wind came back and blew away some of the low hanging branches, exposing a boot.

Naegi's eyes widened. Someone else was in the tree!

"Hey!" Naegi called out. "Is someone up there?"

There was not a response, and the wind had died down to cover up the boot once again. Somewhat determined to find the identity of the person in the tree, Naegi walked in closer, but still remained hesitant in case it was someone dangerous.

He noticed movement from underneath the tree's layers and realised that whoever it was was trying to get away. "H-Hey!" he tried speeding up to catch the person before they disappeared. Whoever was hiding in the tree was climbing it up quickly and swiftly, the tree barely rustling at all.

As Naegi made it right under the tree, he heard the person pounce and stepped back to see where they were jumping off to. His eyes widened when he saw the figure leap into the air, wearing a surprisingly familiar school uniform. The figure turned their head, and looked down into Naegi's wide hazel eyes with their pale blue eyes.

And once again, did those eyes look familiar to Naegi. And for the briefest of seconds, Naegi thought he saw some pink dust their cheeks as they turned away, disappearing over the building. Naegi was left standing gaping at what he'd saw.

Whoever that was must go to Hope's Peak Academy. And whoever it was, he already had a clue to their identity through their eyes. Pale and blue, that's what they were.

"Naegi-kun!" Maizono called out from the end of the street, waving her hand. "The bus is almost here!"

Naegi left his thoughts and chased after Maizono, running as fast as he could to catch that bus. But as he ran, he already began to list down mentally questions he had for the mysterious figure on the roof. He took a seat next to Maizono on the bus, resting his head against the window.

Maizono smiled at Naegi as he stared at the window, and looked back down at her lap. She remained silent as the bus took off towards the school, and unknowing to everyone around her, her cheeks turned the faintest of pinks.

* * *

 ** _i love awkward!naegi and his relationship with maizono. i think they are really cute friends aw_**

 ** _hope you enjoyed the first chapter of my first danganronpa multi-chap story c:_**

 ** _\- blue_**


	2. two - my friend is worried

**chapter two**

It had been only a few days after the events around the park and Naegi hadn't been able to make any progress in uncovering the identity of the mysterious hero who saved both him and his kite. Granted, he hadn't been too occupied in finding out who it was, but it still bothered him every now and then.

"Naegi-kun," Maizono said happily, slipping into the desk beside him. "I got an A!" She flipped over the paper in her hands to reveal her test score where she indeed got a bright red A written in the corner of the page. Her smile said it all; she was very excited about her score.

Naegi managed a smile. "That's great, Maizono-san!" he said sincerely. "I only got a C…" He held his paper up to her to reveal his semi-decent grade with a rather lamely and comically sad looking face printed in the corner.

Maizono's face fell, concerned, and she looked up at Naegi again. Seeing her look so sad made Naegi's cheeks warm up, maybe because he felt so small being sympathised and slightly judged by the pop idol. She reached a hand over and placed her palm over his hand, tilting her head.

"What's wrong, Naegi-kun?" she asked. "Is there something bothering you?"

Naegi opened his mouth to answer, but no words would come out. He had to think about what had been on his mind for him to feel so bothered and distracted when he was doing his test. But his mind only drifted to one answer: the mysterious hero hiding in the tree.

"Is this about your kite?" He blinked, looking up at Maizono with wide confused eyes. _How did she…?_

"I'm psychic, Naegi-kun."

Naegi paused again, still looking at Maizono with a look of pure curiosity and surprise. "…Just kidding?"

Maizono didn't let on a smile and stood up in her seat, and stood looking over Naegi, motioning for him to stand up with a move of her head. He stood up slowly, slipping his paper into his backpack and standing in front of Maizono. Her eyebrows narrowed slightly, and she folded her hands together.

"Where did your paper go-"

"We're gonna solve your problems, Naegi-kun," Maizono said, her tone strict. "We're gonna get to the bottom of what's bothering you and…and solve it!" She reached for his wrist and dragged him out of the class, causing him to nearly stumble.

Once they were out of the class, they were met with two of their classmates: the twins, Enoshima and Ikusaba.

Why they were twins with different surnames still boggled the mind, but Naegi had decided that maybe it was best to just leave it be with Enoshima's attitudes towards it. Speaking of the busty blonde, she was currently wearing some very in fashion clothes, with a very large pair of stylish sunglasses over her eyes which had caught Maizono's attention, causing the duo to stop.

"H-Hello Enoshima-san, Ikusaba-san," Naegi greeted softly to break the silence, with Maizono following suit. Enoshima grabbed the frames from off her eyes and flashed an award winning smile to him and Maizono.

"Heya Makoto-chan," Enoshima said gleefully, appearing to have ignored Maizono outright. "We're having a party this Friday, you gonna come?"

"This Friday?" Naegi repeated, calculating how far away that was. He and Maizono had gone to the park last Sunday, and it had been three days since then, meaning it was Wednesday. That would mean that the party was in two days time. Yay for math.

"Yeah. This Friday," Enoshima retorted, rolling her eyes. "Everyone's going to be there. Even this sad sack." As she said the last words, she rather vigorously slung an arm around Ikusaba's neck, pulling her close to her side. Ikusaba flushed, and looked down at the ground.

Enoshima caught sight of that and grinned towards Naegi. "Don't worry about her. It's her first party too."

Naegi almost flinched, turning a little red out of embarrassment. "Too…? H-Hey, I've been to parties before!"

"Oh, I didn't think you were really a party type," Enoshima replied, genuinely a little surprised. "What kind of parties?'

"Uh," Naegi didn't mean to stutter, but he felt his cheeks turn red when he remember the last big party he went to. "M-Middle school graduation party…?" Behind him he could almost _hear_ Maizono's face fall.

Enoshima's expression didn't change, but her brow was creased into a slight frown. "Well, that's embarrassing. You know Yamada-kun's been to more parties, right?" Hearing that the Ultimate Otaku Nerd had been to more parties than he had made Naegi's cheeks heat up. It wasn't entirely his fault that he wasn't popular, and that most of the parties he was invited to were often hosted by his older neighbours who just wanted to talk and barbecue.

"Where is the party?" Maizono asked, breaking the awkward silence. Finally averting her gaze from Naegi to look and Maizono, Enoshima put her hands on her hips and shifted to her side.

"The gym! And don't worry about it, I've already gotten permission from Kirigiri-sensei. He just doesn't want Oowada-kun or Kuwata-kun breaking anything," Enoshima explained. "And afterwards, we gotta clean up too, but I've already sorted that out so don't worry about it."

Maizono nodded her head. "If that's the case, I'll be happy to attend!"

Already waving her off, Enoshima turned to Naegi with another stretched grin and leaned forward. "And you, Makoto-chan? Ready for your first big boy party?"

Blushing a little red, Naegi nodded his head. Satisfied with his response, Enoshima straightened herself up. "Alright! Don't be late Makoto-chan, or I'll send Oneesan after you!" She held onto the last syllable as she walked away, waving her hand. "See ya!"

As she disappeared around the corner, Naegi and Maizono were left with the silent Ikusaba who hadn't said a word about anything for what felt like a while. As Naegi went to ask her if anything was wrong, her head shot up and she looked at them.

"I wish to see you both at the party on Friday too," she said in a soft but firm tone. Ikusaba bowed her head and quickly chased after her sister. The whole time, she had avoided looking directly at Naegi and kept her gaze distant. It sparked curiosity in Naegi, but he decided not to comment on it. Those twins were a mystery to him.

He'd tried to be nice to them on several occasions, and had invited Ikusaba especially to sit with him and Maizono a fair few times, but she'd politely declined every request. And something he'd just realised then was that he'd never seen her look at him directly in the eyes when replying.

Though they were friends, and shared many classes together with just the two of them, he had rarely, if ever, seen her look back at him. She always seemed distracted or flustered, and he never knew why.

Shaking his head, he turned back to Maizono who was still eager to find the solution to his problem. Grabbing his wrist again, she dragged him down the halls all the way to where they needed to go.

It hadn't taken them long to get where Maizono needed to go, which was right at the dorms. Specifically, the dorm of a certain lavender haired individual. Once they had stopped walking, Naegi's eyes had gone wide with realisation and he was very hesitant to stand outside her door by the doorbell.

She could definitely solve his problem, Naegi had no doubt about that. But he already felt hopeless when he had all these clues as to who it was, but no idea how to piece the clues together. It wasn't like he had any experience in this before.

Maizono turned her head to him and with a curt nod said, "Ring the bell."

Naegi nodded back at her, hunched over somewhat in embarrassment, and rang the doorbell. The pleasant ringing sound echoed softly, and it didn't take too long after for the door to open.

"Kirigiri-san!" Maizono said gleefully, smiling widely at the girl. Kirigiri eyed her curiously, and drifted her gaze off to Naegi, examining his somewhat nervous and embarrassed expression.

She made no effort to greet either of them and said, in her monotonous and stoic tone, "What's Naegi-kun done?"

And then came more embarrassment where Maizono explained to Kirigiri everything that happened on that day, and more. Naegi felt himself sink lower and lower, and had turned such a red colour that if was a miracle that he hadn't been noticed yet.

Once they had done recounting the events, both of the girls looked over at Naegi, bringing their eyes onto him. He didn't even have to look at them to know that they were watching, and that's what made him feel even more flustered.

"Naegi-kun," Kirigiri began, as Naegi's eyes shot straight up to meet her purple ones. "Is all this true?"

There was a delayed reaction to Kirigiri's question, before his cheeks turned from the rosy hue to a deeper darker red. Naegi stood up straight and rubbed his neck with obvious hints of embarrassment.

"Uh yeah," he replied, finding it difficult to meet her intense stare. He looked over to Maizono instead, who was smiling innocently, as if she hadn't just put him on the spot. Turning back to Kirigiri sinking his head just a little, he added, "Um, I was wondering if you could help me."

At this Kirigiri jutted her chin upwards. "Help you, how?"

Maizono didn't offer to help him again either, leaving Naegi feeling more susceptible to his own embarrassment. He struggled to find the words needed, wanting to be short and quick but able to stop Kirigiri from asking questions.

"Well uh, when I was trying to get my kite, I fell…" His cheeks began heating up as Maizono stifled a giggle. "But when I landed safely, and after Maizono-san and I left, I saw someone in the tree." This perked up Kirigiri's interest as she lowered her chin down to stare at Naegi, almost certain now about his request. He nevertheless continued. "So I was wondering if, uh, you could help me find out who it was…?"

Kirigiri's eyes bored into Naegi's as she listened to his story, and nodded her head. "If finding out the identity of the person who's been on your mind will stop you from worrying Maizono-san, and keep you focused on your school work, then I will help."

Naegi froze for a moment before a large grin stretched out across his face and he seemed to light up. Holding his head up high, he said with enthusiasm, "Really? Thank you so much!"

Kirigiri closed her eyes graciously, nodding her chin and smiling faintly to herself. "We should start by investigating the scene of the crime." She looked up and turned to Maizono who had been watching the recent exchange with a smile. "Shall we head off?"

And with a cheerful response, the trio headed out towards the park.

* * *

 ** _first of all, sorry for the delay in this chapter, and sorry for how short it was! but i hope the introduction of enoshima, ikusaba and kirigiri can make up for it!_**

 ** _i must say though, those three are rather hard to write IC, so if you have any tips or comments of any of their characterisations let me know what i did well/what i could improve on! it's my first time writing for them, so any feedback is greatly appreciated c:_**

 ** _and once again, awkward!naegi is my absolute fav :3_**

 ** _\- blue_**


	3. three - my thoughts are racing

**chapter three**

The trio of friends were standing at the base of the tree that Naegi remember oh-so-fondly falling out of not too long ago. In fact upon arriving, he had a vivid memory of falling from the tree and landing without much impact in Maizono's arms not too soon after. That reminded him, he should ask her if she saw what happened.

As Kirigiri scanned the tree for any evidence, with Maizono not too far behind her standing guard, Naegi went over to approach his blue haired friend. She caught sight of him and smiled, waving at him as if she hadn't seen him there. Naegi swallowed down his nervousness and went to approach her, already flushing from nerves and just being around Maizono in general.

"Maizono-san," he began, before he shyly looked away to rub his neck. "Did… did you see anyone in the tree when I fell?" His question didn't seem to shock Maizono, who just stood up straight and brought a finger up to her lower lip.

"Hmm." She looked around in thought, though Naegi had a sneaking suspicion that there wasn't really a truthful intent behind her actions. "From where I was, you didn't really seem to fall. The branch snapped off, but it was never in my way. My only interest was to keep you safe, and I did! I caught you when you jumped down."

From behind Maizono, Kirigiri's ear twitched. There was something off about her story to her too, yet the evidence she was observing would prove that the thickness of the branch could've only snapped with so much pressure. She didn't attempt to climb it, but there was another question she had, that she beat Naegi to.

"Maizono-san, where did you catch Naegi-kun?" she asked, already having a good idea of how the lies would stack up. Maizono turned her head to Kirigiri, and stepped to the side before setting forward to show Kirigiri where she caught Naegi.

Kirigiri didn't acknowledge the smile she sent her way, and instead turned directly to Naegi. "Naegi-kun," she began, looking straight at him before shaking her head. "I'm afraid you're simply overreacting. Maizono-san's story is accurate with what is left at the scene."

Without a second of hesitation, she began to explain why it was possible. "Whether you jumped or fell, you would've landed right here, in her arms. The branch that fell off sight, would've gotten stuck between those branches…" she pointed at a pair of smaller branches that formed a cross section that very well could've supported the large trunk that almost crushed him. "Or rolled off and landed elsewhere. They're no possibility that it could crush Maizono-san from the fall."

Despite Kirigiri's explanation being sensible and quite well thought out, Naegi still had his doubts. He could've absolutely sworn he saw someone in the trees, and felt as if something had moved him. He looked at Kirigiri, who was already wrapping up the case and taking with Maizono, but Naegi still had his doubts. If the Super High School Level Detective could be so certain about this, then what was there for him to doubt about?

With a sigh, Naegi was left to swim in his own uncertainties, and the trio took off back to school. Along the way, Naegi's phone buzzed and he reached into his pocket to check what had been sent. It was just a reminder of Enoshima's party, no big deal.

But what Naegi hadn't expected was for the blonde haired fashionista to walk onto with her sister right behind her, cramming herself into the seat next to Naegi and making herself comfortable. Ikusaba was left to stand on the bus, squished between two older men which made her very distressed.

"Don't worry about her, Makoto-chan," Enoshima told Naegi, tucking her arms behind her head and throwing her legs up over the seat in front of them. "Oneesan has been through worse in the wars. She spent eight days locked in a briefcase that was smuggled into enemy camp. She's coped with much worse."

Naegi, who hadn't heard that story nor did he expect it to be so horrific, sent Ikusaba a shocked look, to which she responded, by looking away turning red. That was a reaction. Enoshima gave a hearty laugh, and dropped her legs.

"Ah, Makoto-chan! I just have to ask, who are you planning to share a dance with during the party?" she asked, her icy blue eyes piercing straight through Naegi's cool. A dance?! He wasn't aware that he'd have to dance with someone…

Seeing right through his nervousness, Enoshima prodded again. "You should make your choice soon. Word in our class is that you're the most sought after guy to share a dance with." Shooting a look at Kirigiri and Maizono who seemed unsuspecting, and another at Ikusaba who shyly looked away when Naegi met her gaze yet again. "C'mon Makoto-chan, which lucky lady are you gonna dance with at the party?"

As flustered as ever, Naegi covered his face with his hands trying to hide his reddening face. It was like Enoshima to find his weak point and exploit it for her benefits, and in this case she'd found his embarrassment of being romantically involved with anyone.

It wasn't a secret that Naegi didn't consider himself an eligible bachelor of any sorts, much less a romantic partner so this exchange had simply made him flushed with awkward nerves. Enoshima, being her usual boisterous self, laughed.

"Ah, I'm just messing with you, Makoto-chan!" she said, flinging an arm around his shoulders, pulling him into her, which startled him just as much as it did when he accidentally bumped into her chest. "It's okay not to have anyone yet. And it's totally okay to dance with multiple people if you want to. Only if you spare me a dance too, I am the hostess, after all."

In the midst of Naegi doing his best not to move and make things more awkward for himself, he hummed a distressed sound, and meekly nodded his head. The response then prompted the fashionista to release him and throw him back into his seat.

"Great! Glad that's settled," Enoshima chirped, right as the bus pulled up to their stop. The collective group of them, along with some others, all stood up and made their way off the bus, with Enoshima leading the pack unsuspectingly and Ikusaba trailing behind.

Once they reached the gates of school, Naegi spotted the familiar faces of Asahina and Oogami who were tossing a volleyball outside the school. Once Asahina caught Naegi's eye, the swimmer waved her hands and promptly made her way over to greet him. As she did, Maizono and Kirigiri said their brief goodbyes, and Enoshima dragged Ikusaba off elsewhere. Naegi really had to give it to Ikusaba for being able to put up with Enoshima's energy.

As Asahina approached him, Naegi started to wonder if maybe it could've been Asahina in the tree. He reminded of himself on the clue he picked up on: pale blue eyes. If he could remember correctly, Asahina had…

"Hey, Naegi-kun!" Asahina waved, coming closer with Oogami picking up the volleyball that must've flown way over Asahina's head. "Are you going to Enoshima-san's party?"

Naegi waved back, nowhere near as enthusiastically and gave his best smile. "Yeah," was his answer. Unfortunately, was what he wanted to add, but that was only an afterthought.

"Oh sweet!" Asahina chuckled. "I thought I wasn't going to be able to find a date. …You don't have a date, do you?"

Naegi began to turn red, yet again. As far as he was concerned, he didn't have a date for the party, but there seemed to at least be some people he would probably go with, as platonically as possible. If it even was possible, for awkward ol' him.

Unsure of how to answer her question, Naegi just remained red and silent while Asahina patiently waited for an answer. And that's when Naegi noticed her eyes: pale and blue. He felt his heart start to beat a little faster, did this mean that it was Asahina that he was saved by in the tree that day?

"Asahina-san," Naegi finally managed to say, softly and uncertain, but perking up Asahina's attention. "Did… did you save me from falling the other day?"

The swimmer stared at him for a second, her face unchanging and blank, as if she was processing what had just been said to her. Naegi started to panic, what if he wasn't supposed to confront her about it? What if she didn't know about it, and was going to be curious to what had happened? There were just too many things Naegi thought could go wrong.

Instead, Asahina tilted her head and frowned. "I don't think so?" was her response, but even she seemed uncertain. "Could it be that it was a _ghost_?"

"Asahina-san," Oogami said, startling Naegi with her deep voice. "You were with me that day, by the pool." Instantly, Asahina's face lit up in recognition and her mouth dropped open.

"Oh yeah! Sorry, Naegi-kun. Wasn't me!" Asahina bowed her head and took a sneaky step back. "See you at the dance!" And with that, Asahina and Oogami left a very confused Naegi.

Confused since seemingly, Asahina's entire persona changed. Naegi knew she wasn't the brightest student in his class, but he was suspicious to how she acted around him. And up until Oogami reminded her of their time by the pool, Asahina had no idea what he was talking about.

In fact, Naegi had more questions than answers now. He never specified what day it was when asking Asahina, yet both Oogami and Asahina knew which day he meant, seemingly. Also, Asahina had first inquired about going with him to the dance, but then left before he could give her a definite answer. He could conclude this she knew something, but unfortunately he couldn't ask them about it.

Naegi sighed. The sun had disappeared beyond the horizon and the sky was starting to darken. Soon it would be Friday, and the day of Enoshima's dance. And maybe, Naegi thought to himself, it would give him clearance to whatever was going on right now with all his friends.

He slipped his hands into his pockets, entered the building, and began to think of dinner.

* * *

 _ **oh wowow it's been eighteen months since i updated this story i am so sorry i don't have an excuse :cc**_

 _ **but we're halfway to the end of the story, and closer to finding the identity of awks!naegi's saviour. any guesses?**_

 _ **i'll do my best to complete this story by the end of the year, but for now i hope you enjoyed!**_

 _ **\- blue**_


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